It's Going to Rain
by KenSan1990
Summary: When a new man comes to a small town, everyone knows about it. What they don't know are the "charming" secrets the new neighbor holds; secrets that may just breathe life into the small town. AU KK SM DISCONTINUED
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**1.**

Hallee was a small town, in a small county in a small valley region. There was nothing overly exciting about it, except maybe the occasional rain that came around. When that occurred, many of the women would come about whining how their flowers had been ruined. It didn't rain much in Hallee.

Naturally, this was the kind of place that Kenshin was looking for. The kind of place where he could unwind and find himself. The kind of place that the rest of the world didn't know about. And it wasn't because he was anyone special.

Kenshin was an everyday man, with everyday needs. There was nothing like paparazzi driving him into seclusion. All he wanted was peace and quiet. And space. Lots of space.

A loner by nature, Kenshin was a man of few words and fewer friends. There was hardly anyone that could be considered close to him. Upon his entry into the Hallee community, people felt as though he were no more than a ghost, or a puff of smoke. He only appeared in the shops every great once in a while, and there was no one that he spoke with, not that he didn't offer kind smiles to everyone.

His neighbor Sanosuke Sagara, one of the most boisterous in town, had been reporting to everyone at the bar about his neighbor's actions. He had explained that the man seemed rather Amish like, including washing and drying his clothes the old fashioned way, walking or biking everywhere, and as long as he'd been there, he hadn't heard a phone or television once.

Everyone thought that Sanosuke was joking around with them, because that was almost part of his job. In a way, he had earned the title "Village Idiot" not that people didn't listen to the gossip that he spread.

One day, as Sanosuke pulled up in between the two nearly identical homes, he took note of his neighbor planting a garden out in the back of his house. He glanced up to the sky; pure azure with only a few lofting clouds, and then looked back down to his neighbor.

"Good afternoon," he heard, as light as air. Sanosuke climbed out of the car and pretended to not be in shock. These were the first words that he'd heard out of his neighbor. "Nice weather," the neighbor pointed to the sky.

"Yeah, just be careful."

"Oh?"

"It's bound to rain any time."

"It won't rain," the neighbor stated matter-of-fact. He continued to smile. Sanosuke nodded his head and turned back to his car. "Sir?"

"What?"

"I haven't gotten your name have I?"

"I don't think so."

Sanosuke turned around to see the neighbor wiping his hands on the back of his shirt.

"Sano," Sanosuke offered. "Sano Sagara."

"Kenshin, it's a pleasure."

_I'm sure_, Sanosuke thought. He was wary of his neighbor's smile. There was nothing to hint whether it was genuine or not.

"Hey uh…since your new. Anything you need to know?"

Kenshin looked at him blankly, thought a moment, and then nodded. "Would you happen to have a lake or pond or something for fishing?"

"We have a lake, but no fish."

"Oh," Kenshin rolled his shoulders then looked to the sky. "You know, maybe it will rain."

Sanosuke brought his head up so fast he nearly knocked himself out on the trunk he had pulled up.

"Say what?"

Kenshin was standing calmly assessing the sky.

"It might rain."

"You just said…"

"My instinct changed," he said. He looked back to the hanging laundry. "I better take those down."

"Yeah…" Sanosuke rubbed the back of his head. "Hey, you drink?"

"Me?" Kenshin asked, pretending there were more people around. "No, not much. Not in a while."

"Well, there's a bar in town if you want, you could come and join us on Thursday's. It's poker night."

"Oh? Well that sounds nice." Kenshin stated. Sanosuke laughed. "What's funny?"

"You sound like a mother."

"Do I?"

"Well, not the voice but…"

"Ah. I see."

"You don't have any odd surprises you're gonna reveal do you?"

"Surprises? Like secrets?"

Sanosuke shrugged. "Like secrets."

"Oh no. Nothing that would be worth talking about."

"But you do have secrets?" tempted Sanosuke feeling that he was extra clever.

Kenshin wrinkled his nose and looked back at the canvas that was the mountains. He smiled at the painted backdrop then turned back to Sanosuke.

"So where was that pond?" he asked, diverting the question. Sanosuke managed to keep on his feet, and simply extended a hand to point out into a long field of flowing grasses. Kenshin nodded his head simply, and then trekked back into his home.

"It was nice talking with you!" he called as the door closed. Sanosuke mouthed his neighbor's words and rammed his knuckles toward his hips. His eyes traveled to the back of his neighbor's yard. The red head had appeared out in the back and was taking each piece of cloth from the hanger. He narrowly glanced back to Sanosuke. Once the man caught this glance, he scurried into his own home, feeling slightly intimidated.

**2.**

Thursday night, to say the least, was the rowdiest of all nights. It was just about the only night that the police might be called, and it was the only night that the entire town seemed to stay up all night. Of course, when the bar was emitting sound that could be heard in a seven mile radius it was really hard for anyone to sleep. Not that anyone had a problem with that. At least, not until now….

"What is all the ruckus?" a voice demanded. All of sudden, in the middle of a proper silence in the middle of the night, there seemed to be some sort of explosion. An eruption of pure laughter. As joyous as this sounded, the time of night really wasn't the appropriate time for it. At least not to the man to whom the voice belonged.

The door to the bar slammed open revealing a scene of complete disarray, and as it appeared a scene of pure joy. The man curled his lips at this sight.

Sanosuke upturned his head from his cards. From the same table sat three others: Kenshin (which had surprised Sanosuke), Katsuhiro Tsukioka (known to many as either 'Katsu' or 'Tsunan') and Aoshi Shinomori (possibly the quietest man in the bar).

"Do you people have any idea..?"

"Shut your yap Shishio and let the rest of us have fun."

Kenshin leaned over to Katsuhiro, "Who's that?" he whispered.

"That," Katsuhiro pointed at the man, "is Makoto Shishio, and you best stay out of his way."

Kenshin's eyebrows rose. "Why?"

"'Cause he's like the designated ruler of this little place," Katsuhiro explained. He discreetly craned his neck to look over at Sanosuke's cards. It seemed that not even he was that dense.

"Keep your eyes on your own hand ya damned cheater."

Katsuhiro threw his hands up in surrender. "I wasn't doing anything honest."

Shishio still stood at the doorway, his arms now crossed. His body was starched regally, and hanging from his shoulders was a small cape that appeared to be made of fur.

"That poor animal," Kenshin shook his head.

"Animal rights activist?" Katsuhiro asked.

"No, but seeing as it has to be with him," Kenshin said, trying to hide the slight bit of malice in his voice. Katsuhiro patted his shoulder.

"We all pity it, believe me."

Sanosuke stood throwing his hand of cards on the table. Though Katsuhiro had a better opportunity to look at the hand, he was instead immersed in the scene at hand.

"Look, you come in here every week complaining about this and that," Sanosuke said. He glanced back at the people who spoke in a hushed tone to one another. "Doesn't look like your spiels are really having much of an effect on us. So, how bout this? Take the stick out of your ass and join us for once."

"I wouldn't dare mingle with the likes of you…drunkards."

"I'm not drunk am I?" Kenshin asked to Katsuhiro. The long haired man ducked his head and folded his hand toward his chest.

"I don't believe so."

"You'd be amazed at the fun you'll have with the likes of us…drunkards."

A roar of laughter erupted from the bar just as it had earlier. From the way the fire flickered in Shishio's eyes, it was apparent that he didn't want to give up. For the sake of his pride however, he turned around and marched out of the bar, the door swinging behind him.

A layer of silence covered the bar momentarily, but as one person spoke so did the whole lot. While the patrons forgot the starched man, Kenshin seemed to have his image burned into his mind.

"He's a very cold man, that he is," said the red head. "Fold."

"Yeah, he could use a good thaw. Not much we can do though," Sanosuke threw in a few more coins. "One of these days I think someone will light that place of his on fire, just to see it go up in flames."

"I wouldn't do something that cruel," Kenshin said. Katsuhiro and Sanosuke ended up folding, leaving Aoshi with the pot.

**3.**

The old pond sat in the back of a large scope of land. It was said that it use to be full of fish and that many of the townspeople went there just for a good catch. Now that it was empty, so was the land around it. The field was full of tall yellow grasses that came up to Kenshin's waist. In one of his hands was an empty basket, and the other was a pole.

When he had come through the town with these items, everyone was looking at him oddly. Surely he should know that the pond didn't have any fish, right? Kenshin heeded Sanosuke's warning that there weren't any fish, but he found himself in good luck and thought that he should pursue the idea. Even if there weren't any fish he could still sit there in the quiet and examine the nature. But he knew there were fish.

Upon making it to the pond, Kenshin reasoned with himself that there were fish there. If no one had been there in a along time, as he presumed they hadn't, then how were they so sure that there weren't any fish? Of course, it was easy to believe that theory. Why would there be fish? It wasn't like there was spontaneous generation from the pond.

Kenshin sat, laying all thoughts aside as he baited the hook and cast his line into the murky water. The bottom wasn't visible due to heavy algae and dust cluttered on the surface. His line barely caused a ripple through the contents.

For several hours the docile red head sat considering that maybe he was wrong. From the distance a collective of townspeople had gathered. It was Friday, and most were either back from work, or taking time off just to watch the man. Just as he hadn't moved, neither had they.

"You think he'll stay there till he catches something?" one woman asked.

"He could easily replace Sano as our idiot," said another.

From behind a smaller girl forced her way. She ducked around people until she came to the front. No one took notice of her. Once she got out of the blob of people, they simply reformed, continuing their watch.

"How long's he been at it?" this girl mumbled to herself.

"A few hours," it appeared the Seta Sojiro, who spoke just about as much (or even less) than Hallee's new neighbor, wanted to answer her question. "Are you just joining us Miss Kamiya?"

"Maybe."

"You really haven't missed anything."

"Don't you guys think this is a bit rude?" she asked. When turning back to look at the group of people, she wasn't surprised to see them whispering amongst themselves. She shot a hateful glance at everyone.

"This is stupid," she mumbled, and started to turn back, but when she heard the little flare up in the crowd, she immediately turned to look at the man sitting at the bank of the pond. He was pulling hard at his pole, as if it were caught on something.

"That's not possible," Kaoru said to herself, knowing that there were no fish in the pond. Still, she watched this man fight with all his strength. He fought up to the point that he was standing just to ease the pole out of the water.

When he eased it out, there was an awkward silence among the townsfolk.

"No way…" Kaoru put her hand to her mouth. "Is that what I think it..?"

"Did anyone lose this?" the red head called turning around. Hanging neatly off his line was a dingy piece of cloth that must have once been pink. "I believe it would be a woman's," he said.

"I don't believe there's a freakin'…"Kaoru was cut off by Sanosuke said:

"Is that a bra?"

Kenshin looked at the cloth very incredulously, because he too had a hard time believing that it was in his hands.

"Does anyone wish to claim it?" Kenshin asked shyly.

Kaoru began marching out into the field, and everyone's eyes were on her as she did. She stopped short of Kenshin, inspecting the bra thoroughly.

"Who here's a 34C?"

The crowd buzzed and singled out the women. They categorized the women until they came to two: Tomoe Yukishiro and Megumi Takani. Megumi shot a threatening glance to Sanosuke. The spiky haired man simply shrugged his shoulders. Tomoe, a girl who seemed almost too polite and kind for her own good, began blushing heavily and tucking her chin into the collar of her shirt. As she did, her hand slowly crept up into the air.

"This is yours Miss?" asked Kenshin.

With a helpful shove, Tomoe stumbled toward Kenshin and retrieved the muddy piece of cloth.

"Thank you…"she mumbled shyly.

The buzz of the crowd was worse than thousands of bees. The eyes of every man and woman were on Tomoe. Some where disgusted, others were interested in how her bra had ended up in the pond. Tomoe scurried past all the townspeople until she was on Main Street. While the eyes of these folks followed her, they didn't physically follow her. They let her run and hide in shame before they started toward the town again.

"Wow…"

Kenshin had yet to realize that Kaoru was still standing next to him.

"What's that?"

"Wow…would have never taken Tomoe for a slut," she said. She made sure that Megumi was far enough away before saying: "Honestly I thought it was Megumi."

"Uh huh," Kenshin turned around and sat on the bank of the pond. "That was quite a scene, that it was," he murmured.

"You still trying this?"

"Well," he shrugged his shoulders. "I suppose. Maybe I'll find more sunken treasure."

Kaoru followed him to the bank of the pond. "Can I sit with you?" she inquired.

"You may do whatever you wish," he responded casting the line once again. "May I ask you a question though? While you're here?"

"Sure."

"That girl, Tomoe was it?"

"Yeah, what about her?"

"She seemed very….upset more than embarrassed," Kenshin stated.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know," he laughed it off. "Never mind that. What's your name?"

"Kaoru and you stranger?"

"Kenshin Himura. It's a pleasure."

"Yeah, same," Kaoru leaned her head to the side. "Say, you're new here right?"

"I moved in about two weeks ago."

"You know the things they've said about you right?" Kaoru scooted a little closer to Kenshin.

"Things? Oh sure. Rumor usually gets to the one that's rumored about the quickest," Kenshin said matter-of-factly.

"Doesn't it bother you?"

Kenshin shrugged. "Let them talk."

"Is any of it true?"

Kenshin tugged on the pole, but not so significantly.

"It may be."

Kaoru puckered her lips. "They got one thing right."

"What's that?"

"You are a strange one."

"Strange? How strange?"

"Strange enough," she rested her head on her knees. "Strange enough to garner these people's attention."

"It'll go away," he said, and tugged once more.

"What'd you do? Go and catch another bra?"

Kaoru brought her head up and leaned over into the murky water. Kenshin started to reel in whatever was on his line. As he did, Kaoru put her hand to her mouth.

"That's a keeper," he said pulling the small creature into his hands. It flopped to fight his small hands, but was no match for the grip. Kenshin eased the hook out of its lip and settled it in the basket.

"What the hell are you…?" Kaoru asked. Kenshin was already packing up and walking away. "Hey, hey magic man. How'd you do that?"

"Do what? Catch a fish? I simply cast the line with a worm on it and let it sit in the…"

"I know how to fish dumb nut," Kaoru scolded. "How'd you catch it in a barren pond?"

"It's not so barren now is it?"

"What?"

"The pond technically isn't barren."

"I know that, but how did you catch it?"

"Well…"he rolled his shoulders. "You already know how to fish so…I don't know what you want to hear Miss Kaoru."

Kaoru slapped her forehead. "You're so hopeless," she said, and stormed toward him. "How the hell did the thing magically appear in the pond?"

"I wouldn't know."

"I think you do."

"Oh, don't misjudge simplicity Miss Kaoru," Kenshin said. "One of these day's you're going to mistake the simple for the magnificent."

"What does that mean?"

"Exactly what it says."

A/N: Like? Don't? Tell me what you think. Till next time, KenSan out!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**1.**

As far as everyone in Hallee was concerned, Makoto Shishio wasn't a part of them. Though it was true that he was a resident of the quiet town, he was far from well recepted among them. As far as they were concerned, the only reason that Shishio was tolerated by them was because it was his family that had founded the small town back before the Great War. Though, there wasn't much more than that. If it weren't for that little fact hanging over their heads, they wouldn't have to reason to deal with him. That, and he was like the landlord of the people.

Makoto Shishio wasn't a picky man, as it would seem, about those that lived in the town. So long as they paid their rent and kept him well supplied there was nothing wrong. But they had seen the dark side of this man.

Old folk had a hard time believing that he was descended from the same man who founded the place. Not that the man that founded the place was of Japanese ancestry to begin with. Somewhere along the line the blood got mixed into Shishio's line and that accounted for his complextion, and his name. The man who had founded the place was trying to create his own sort of utopia. He was trying, as so many others had, to create a self sufficent little town that would need no more than it supplied to itself, and had no use of the outside world. But the outside world wanted to be a part of Hallee.

As the town was passed from hand to hand, things began to change. They changed as society changed. With world technology growing around them, people in Hallee wanted to be a part of monstrous industry, and they wanted the technology. The family that Shishio belonged to, the names long since forgotten, found a way to oblige both the citizens and themselves. The money went through the family, and stayed there. The rest of the town went without, and kept going without as the decades passed them by. Soon, they were technologically advanced, and they were still poor. The difference was that they were happy. As simple as they were, they were happy.

And Shishio wasn't. That wasn't to say it didn't make him happy to flaunt around his wealth. It was almost like a weekly routine to show off who he was. Not that anyone paid attention to him. He really didn't care because the truth was, he didn't even have to come outside the magnificent estate that stood above the rest of the town.

The first thing that was built in Hallee was the Makoto Estate, though it was known by another, forgotten name. The impressive edifice was the signal that Hallee even exisited. At a certain time of day, the long stretch of shadow it created ran down Main Street making it impossible for anyone to miss. Even in the morning light it looked glorious. The way the light glimmered off the estate at dawn made it seem like the house was made from gold. Though afterward it showed its true colors. The estate was on its way to dilapidation with the falling boards and wisteria vines crawling over it. Not to mention that foundation had begun to sag.

When Kenshin stepped out of his home in the early morning, the estate was the first thing his saw looking forward. He turned away, trying to ignore the structure. It wasn't as if he was trying to scorn it, but when he looked to tower that was also built into it, it reminded him of a guard tower. In his mind it was as if Shishio was watching them, picking his time to strike. In the least, it felt like they were in prison.

Kenshin ignored all the thoughts. He had to be positive. After all, he was in a generally happy mood that morning. There was nothing deterring him from getting a light breakfast at the local cafe', or taking the books that he was holding in his hand to the library.

Something about the bustle of small town life made the corners of his mouth turn up. He was with a delicate stride, books clasped up his left arm. The closer towards the center of town he got, the more noise he heard.

Even at the crack of dawn, people were up and about whether it be for their jobs or just to be out. The sounds of chit chat was a calming sound. It was as if the people of the town had nothing bad to say, unlike in the large metropolises where is felt as though every corner he took there was someone yelling in an icy tone, or damning another person to Hell.

Kenshin was caught off guard in the middle of his reveries. He was thrown to the ground by his own inability to pay attention to what was right in front of him. The books scattered about, dust coating their covers. He shook his head hoping that it would stop spinning. A hand was pushed before him tempting for him to take it. The red head didn't pass up the courtesy.

"Thank you."

"No need to. It was my fault after all."

The air about the red head chilled. The voice was unmistakable, though he'd only heard it once. Reluctantly Kenshin looked this man in the eye.

"Good morning Shishio," he sighed, bending down to pick up the books.

"And to you," Shishio replied. "I'm sorry for this."

"No, no..."Kenshin didn't want to share many words with Shishio. There was something about this man that made him feel...off. It wasn't that he was pure evil, or that he didn't seem trustworthy. Something like intimidation was getting the better of the red head. The way his brown eyes glowed an evil red in the morning light, or the way his lips were upturned into a grin that was no less than sincere yet somehow still cruel.

"I'm afraid I haven't met you just yet have I?" Shishio questioned, forcing Kenshin to stay.

"We have actually," Kenshin cleared his throat, "at the bar."

Shishio thoughts back. For a moment his face flashed in disgust because he was aware of what Kenshin was talking about. He let it go. "Ah...yes. You were with Sagara is that right?"

"Yes."

"It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm sorry I haven't welcomed you to the community yet."

Kenshin grinned politely and shook Shishio's hand. "I have things I need to do so, if you don't mind I'll be off."

Shishio nodded curtly and moved to the side allowing Kenshin to pass.

As he moved away, Kenshin tried not to make it apparent that he was trying hard to get away. He dusted off the books more as he approached the little library in town.

The Hallee library wasn't used a lot. It was so small that it was nearly squeezed to death between the two buildings it was nestled in. It still used the old system of stamping the card in the back of the book. There was even an entire card catalog in a filing cabinet in the back of the building.

Kenshin nudged the door opened, and he wasn't surprised that there was only one other person in there besides him: the librarian. And to top it off, it was a different one from when he first came to the library just days ago. She was awfully familiar. The more that he looked her over, he came to realize that this girl was the same one that sat with him at the pond after the commotion over Tomoe's bra. She was stacking books on a shelf, not that there were many for her to put up. She sighed in that, I-know-this-is-a-dead-end-job, kind of way.

"Good morning Miss Kaoru," he addressed realizing she hadn't heard the bell ring. Kaoru looked over her shoulder.

"Oh hey. Nice seeing you again," she climbed down from a ladder. "Catch any other fish?

"Not quite," Kenshin replied. "I let the one I caught go as well. It would have been too cruel to eat it."

"You should have shown it off to people or something," Kaoru collected the books that Kenshin handed over to her. "Hmm..._Catch-22, To Kill a Mockingbird, Lolita_. Got quite the little selection there."

"I like classic literature," Kenshin said. "I was hoping you had a copy of _The Count of Monte Cristo_."

Kaoru laughed awkwardly. "I can look it up. I just started here a few days ago as something to do during the day. I'm not familiar with what we have."

"That's fine. I can get it myself."

Kaoru eyed Kenshin as he floated over to the D section of books. His fingers danced along with spines of the books until he got to Du..."Ah. Dumas."

"So, why Hallee?"

"I beg your pardon?" Kenshin glanced back with the most innocent face that she had seen on a man that she was sure must have been thirty or so, but didn't look a day older than sixteen.

"Hallee? Why'd you come to such a small place?"

Kenshin shrugged, settling the book in the crook of his arm. He started to float around the library, gazing at the many books he felt probably hadn't been touched in many weeks. Some, as he noted, had dust collecting over them. He sighed.

"I'm not sure. I'd heard about it," he said. "I live nearby in the city. I just didn't like it that much, so I figured a place like this would be nice and quiet," he explained. Kaoru's face contorted.

"The closest _big_ city is about 50 or 60 miles from here, and that's south."

"I came from the north that I did," Kenshin pulled out another book that she recognized as _David Copperfield_. "It was quite a way."

"So you came from the north, down here to this little one horse town just so you could escape the honking horns and everything?" Kaoru moved around the main desk of the library. Kenshin didn't answer her immediately, which wasn't a surprise. His lip moved a little. He bit back things he wanted to say, and she could see the internal conflict that was growing within him.

"Miss Kaoru I..." he set the books on the desk. "Yes; too much noise, too much commercialism. Too much for me."

"Oh. Sorry if I pried," Kaoru registered that she sounded like a snotty younger sister. When she went to cover her mouth, she realized that she didn't need to because Kenshin was laughing at her.

"No need. It's perfectly alright. Perfectly legitimate. I can imagine that you've grown up here all your life and you're willing to break free of the day to day monotony and go to a place that has more than just a few fields and down home people right?"

The girl stopped. "You make it out as though it's a bad thing."

"I only concern for you," Kenshin stated awkwardly. Kaoru furrowed her brows, demanding to know what this man meant. She'd only met him one other time, and she honestly believed that either she was crazy, or the long haired man standing before her was. Which was possible. Maybe it was just that she wasn't use to someone wanting to take care of her, and a stranger at that.

"Thank you, I guess," she stifled a laugh. "I know all the things. Look both ways when crossing the street. Don't trust anyone who wants to take photos of you naked....yeah yeah."

"Well. I wasn't exactly going in that direction, that I wasn't."

Kaoru blushed. "So, what did you mean then?"

"Nothing. I just concern. I'd lived in the city for all my life. It had become a normal part of me. Moving here was a huge change, that it was. I'm not sure that I can fully adapt to such a place, just as I believe you wouldn't adapt to a big city."

"You can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl?" Kaoru questioned. She gave Kenshin the reading materials. "You live next to Sano right?"

"That's right."

"I might drop by sometime, if you don't mind. To help you adapt."

The red head bowed his head. "As you wish Miss Kaoru."

As Kenshin began walking away, Kaoru debated whether or not to tell him anything else. The door was half open when she yelled out:

"Hey!" Kenshin half turned. She noticed that there was a lack of innocence in his eyes now, like something had taken him over. Kaoru puckered her lips. "Watch out for Shishio."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. He may come off nice, but he's a total prick. If you can't tell by the big house on the hill," Kaoru pointed in the general direction. "I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"'Kay. See ya then!" Kaoru waved to Kenshin. As he departed, she fell into her seat and prepared for an extended day of monotony around the Hallee library.

* * *

**2.**

If people believed that Kenshin was an old fashioned man, they may be right to a certain extent. He liked making dinner from scratch, even if he ate it alone. He enjoyed doing his laundry by hand, although he did own a washer and dryer for those stains that just wouldn't come out. He liked to be traditional, Amish even. Being in touch with his ancestry still didn't change the fact that he was clearly in tune with modern society and its ways of manipulation. Namely: electronic items. Things like the computer and the cell phone where no foreign objects to the red headed man. In fact, they were tools of daily life. Now, he would say that he didn't own a television, but that was because he didn't want to own one. The computer and the cell phone were for the things that kept him fed and clothed. Work was necessary, and he worked from home. He liked the comfort of his semi-rustic home.

As Kaoru noticed when she popped in one afternoon, a few days after Kenshin had visited the library, it appeared to be a home straight out of _Better Homes and Gardens_. Everything had a place, and she dare not touch it. She almost didn't want to sit down on the couch, but since Kenshin offered it to her, she couldn't refuse. When she looked forward to the armoire that was placed on the opposing wall, she was confused when she didn't see a television sitting there. She noted however, the laptop that was on the coffee table.

"Would you like something to drink?" Kenshin offered, effectively startling the girl. "Coffee? Tea? Water?"

"No thank you."

"Alright," Kenshin sat adjacent from her in a modest rocking chair where she would usually see an overstuffed armchair. "I'm glad you stopped by. I was about to head to the library."

"Oh, stuff to bring back?"

"Well, yes and no."

Kaoru blushed. "Oh, well..."

"There are not that many people around here are there?" Kaoru's ego deflated. She took that the wrong way.

"There are tons of people, you just need to know how to warm up to them. This certainly isn't the way," Kaoru said, insinuating to him sitting in the chair sipping at his own glass of tea. "You've talked to Sano haven't you?"

"Of course."

"He gets home at about threeish so, you could talk to him. I mean, if you've been invited to the bar with him, you're already a friend in his book."

"Really? Well, I have a friend then."

"He invites a lot of people to the bar. If you can't tell, he's pretty friendly."

"That's for certain," Kenshin stated. "It's Wednesday, is it not?"

"Yeah. Tomorrow's the gathering," she told him, referring to the bar. "I don't go. I don't like to. It's all a bunch of men who get drunk out of their minds and hit on woman all night long."

"I'd don't drink that horribly," Kenshin murmured. "I could keep you company. You sound as if you want to go, in some way."

"What gives you that impression?" Kaoru demanded hotly. Kenshin looked her square in the eye and smiled. "You're a freakin' mind reader or somethin'."

Kenshin chuckled. "Oh no. I would lose my mind reading others. I'm sure it would hurt a lot."

Kaoru stared at the computer, open on a search engine. "So, you aren't Amish?"

"The rumors?"

"The rumors."

"Well, no. I have a job, just like everyone else," Kenshin said. "I have to be able to live in some way."

"How do you get your money then?" Kaoru asked. "Do they send it to you in the mail or something?"

"Yeah. Every now and then. It's a meager company and I do what I can for it," Kenshin crossed his arms. "What do you want to do Miss Kaoru? Other than leave here?"

"I don't know. Something fun. Something exciting. Not acting, I couldn't even remember my lines in the school play but, something that's not here," Kaoru hung her head. "I have an idea."

"What's that?"

"Since you don't know a lot of people, how about I show you around Hallee for a bit? You know, to get you use to it. I can let you meet a bunch of my friends. Like Megumi and Misao. Then there's Tae and Sae at the restaurant, and Okina, that's Misao's grandfather. If you know Okina, you'll eventually meet everyone." Kaoru said nearly everything that she had to say in a single breath. She tried to hide that it had worn her out, but her face turned red. "Wanna do it?"

"Sure. Why not?"

"And on the way you can tell me about the city."

"There's not too much to tell, that there isn't," Kenshin shut down the computer and looked around for his keys. "But I'll do what I can."

"Cool."

Kaoru talked a lot. She felt really open around Kenshin, as if there was nothing on her mind that she couldn't say. She even admitted a few things, whether he heard them or not at how fast she was talking, that she wouldn't admit to even Misao or Megumi for various reasons. Kenshin didn't judge her. He didn't tell her what to do, or who to be. He just went along with the flow of things, agreeing with her and making smart comments that on occasion got her lost.

When they arrived at Megumi's office, both were surprised to see Megumi running around in fury. "Where is it?" they could hear from outside. The assistant at the clinic was trembling at the woman doctor. As Kaoru walked in, all seemed to quiet for several seconds.

"Hey," she waved to Megumi. "Something wrong?"

"I'm missing an important file," Megumi was searching through every scrap peace of paper, glaring at her assistant as she did. "I don't have time to chat....hello," she noticed Kenshin immediately. "Why, who's the smart dressed guy?"

"Him? This is Kenshin. I wanted him to meet some new people."

"Oh, so you're the new guy?" Megumi giggled. "Nice to meet you."

"Pleasure's mine."

Megumi whirled around to her assistant who had stopped the search to watch the two talk. She glared her down once more, forcing her to find it. "I would really appreciate it if you two could help me find this thing. I swear this is important," she said, a begging look in her eye. Kenshin nodded, and since he did, Kaoru had to go along.

"What's it look like?" Kenshin asked, gently shuffling through a few files on a nearby table.

She described it as a purpleish folder with tons of writing on it and the word 'confidential' printed on the front in red sharpie. The pair that had just entered started looking through everything in the building, even go so far as to look underneath tables and in the magazine racks. Kenshin returned to the desk where the assistant was still shuffling through all of her things. He made a few gestures with his hand making it appear as though he was counting the contents of the desk. He reached over underneath a few manila folders and eased something out of one of them. A purple something.

"Miss Megumi?" Kenshin called. The frantic doctor came out from one of her exam rooms. She began to glow and ran toward Kenshin, snatching the folder in the process.

"Oh thank you Sir Ken," she batted her eyes toward him and bent down to kiss him on the cheek. "You're my knight in shining armor."

"Umm....your welcome?" he offered, taken aback by her show of affection. He could feel daggers digging into his back. "Miss Kaoru?"

"Megumi! You hardly know him!"

"I was thanking him," the foxy doctor rebutted. "I don't see your name anywhere."

Kaoru clenched her fists evilly. "Shut up!"

"I have patients coming in soon, so I'm going to be tending to them. How about I meet you...tomorrow at the gathering?" Megumi suggested. "I saw you at the bar Sir Ken, surely you'll be there again." This wasn't a question.

"He will," Kaoru grabbed Kenshin's arm possesively. "Am so will I."

"Hmph," Megumi turned on her heel. As she walked away, Kenshin let out a low:

"Oro?"

* * *

**3.**

"This is great," Kaoru muttered. "I'm having _such _a wonderful time," she laid her cheek in her hand. Misao patted her shoulder.

"There there. Megumi's just like that."

"She got him drunk," Kaoru roared. "And now I'm over here while she does God knows what to him," Kaoru let out a heavy sigh. She was no longer at the bar like she had been for a majority of her night. She opted to spend the night with Misao, hoping that maybe it would cheer her up. What had been on her mind every five seconds was how Megumi was being real delicate as she slipped Kenshin drinks. She made it out as though it were nothing, that was until Kaoru noticed that Kenshin was completely out of it. He was no longer on the plane of reality. Megumi took whatever chance she got. Misao and Kaoru were both aware that she would never do anything, except maybe dance with the guy and kiss him a few times.

"She's the equivalent of a guy," Kaoru complained. "I mean seriously, how many chicks do you know that would do that?"

"I don't know. Go to bed Kaoru," Misao had been groaning to get past Kaoru's ranting. They were suppose to be 'sleeping' but Kaoru was being very adamant that she didn't want to do that.

"I just can't freakin' believe it."

"I can't either," Misao groaned.

"You're not even listening to me!" Kaoru shoved the girl. "C'mon. A few more minutes of being awake won't kill you."

"I have things to do tomorrow," Misao shoved her friend back. "Go to...." there was a flash of light in Misao's bedroom window. "What the hell was that?"

"I don't know."

There was second flash. Misao could make out where it was coming from after the second flash. "It's the bar."

Kaoru rose up and looked out her window. There was someone running toward them at an alarming rate. It was a male who was hardly holding himself up and swerving worse than a car on an icy road. Misao opened the window to greet the unknown guest. As he came closer, the security lights to Misao's home turned on revealing the spiky headed village idiot.

"Sano?"

"Big...light...Kenshin..."

"What the...? Catch your breath," Kaoru ordered. She and Misao were now sharing the window. Sanosuke gulped down the air around him and settled his hands on his knees.

"The light, at the bar. Megumi and Kenshin were dancing and then all of a sudden there was this....this....light and wind everywhere..."

"Sano?" Kaoru curled her nose. "What the hell did you drink?"

"Look Missie," Sanosuke walked closer to the window. "I-I may not be able to keep my balance, but I know what I saw...and felt."

Misao glanced to Kaoru. "There was a light," she said. "How do we know it's not true?"

"It was probably Shishio, the prick," Kaoru said. "Go home Sano."

"You'll see. I'm not the only one that saw it," Sano took a few steps back and proved that he was clearly unable to stand on his own two feet when he landed flat on his back. Kaoru slammed the window shut not wanting to deal with it.

"You are so skeptical..."Misao said. "Like we've ever had this happen before? Then he shows up and bam! Weird stuff happens at the bar."

Kaoru sat down where she was sleeping next to Misao's bed. She couldn't deny that weird things had been happening. First the fish, then the light. It couldn't have been something to do with Kenshin? Could it? She shook her head.

"I'm going to bed," Kaoru grumbled.

"Finally!"

A/N: Long...but i got out of writer's block finally...so.....what's the light? Heehee Till next time, KenSan out!


End file.
